Russell Brand faces new allegations he ‘laughed’ on radio show after ‘exposing himself to woman’
The BBC has said it is looking into allegations by a woman who claimed Russell Brand exposed himself to her and then laughed about it afterwards on his BBC radio show.
Brand, 48, has previously been accused of rape, sexual assault and abuse by four other women with the alleged offences taking place between 2006 and 2013.
The comedian and presenter has denied the claims, which were first reported by the Sunday Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches, saying his relationships were “always consensual”.
The Metropolitan Police subsequently said it had received a sexual assault allegation against Brand dating back to 2003.
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Brand: ‘Could we have done more?’
Brand’s latest accuser is a woman – who the BBC is calling ‘Olivia’ to protect her identity – who accuses Brand of sexual misconduct in 2008.
The alleged incident is the first time he has been accused of sexual misconduct and then heard talking about it, according to BBC News.
And it raises serious questions for the corporation about how that part of the show, which was pre-recorded, was able to be broadcast just days later, BBC News reported.
‘I said no, no, no’
Olivia claimed Brand exposed himself to her 15 years ago in Los Angeles while she was working in the same building as the BBC.
She said she answered the door to Brand and his team, who were there to pre-record an episode of The Russell Brand Show for Radio 2, on 16 June 2008.
Olivia said she went into the bathroom and then noticed Brand behind her.
In her account to the BBC, Brand said he was going to have sex with her and she said “no, you’re not”.
She claimed he then showed her his genitals “and I said no, no, no”.
Olivia said Brand then put his genitals back in his trousers and the bathroom door was shut when there was a “banging” noise, with someone saying “Russell, you are wanted in the radio studio”.
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Accuser says she felt ‘disgusted’ after incident
Olivia said she returned to her desk in disbelief at what had happened, and texted a BBC employee in the office about it.
She said the employee told her that he knew what had happened because Brand was talking about it in the studio, BBC News reported.
It also reported Olivia had later tracked down the recording after recent allegations against Brand emerged.
The radio episode, which aired on 21 June 2008, featured an exchange between Brand and his colleague Matt Morgan who said, “[It’s been] 25 minutes since he showed his w**** to a lady” and referred to “the receptionist”.
Brand is apparently heard laughing in the recording.
Olivia, who has never worked as a receptionist, said she felt disgusted when she heard the audio had not been cut out.
Olivia never made a complaint, according to the BBC News report, which added BBC management was informed about the incident in 2019, but no formal action was taken.
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BBC to investigate
A BBC spokesperson said: “We’re very sorry to hear of these allegations and we will look into them.
“We are conducting a review to look at allegations of this nature and if the woman who has shared her story is willing to speak to us, we would be very keen to hear from her and anyone else who may have information.
“A key part of the review is to understand what complaints were made at the time, if there was knowledge of Russell Brand’s conduct while he worked on BBC radio, and what was done as a result. We will of course speak to the bureau team and anyone who was working there in 2008 as part of this.
“Further, the Director General [Tim Davie] has been very clear that some broadcasts from that period were, and are, inexcusable and totally unacceptable, and would never be aired today.”
Matt Morgan said in a statement reported on BBC News: “I was not aware until now of the nature of this encounter. I’ve expressed my regrets now looking back at the impact of the show and this is a further example.
“The recent coverage has been very distressing to read and I reiterate my absolute condemnation of any form of the mistreatment of women”
Sky News has reached out to Brand’s representatives for comment.
The last blast furnaces left operating in Britain could see their fate sealed within days, after their Chinese owners took the decision to cut off the crucial supply of ingredients keeping them running.
Jingye, the owner of British Steel in Scunthorpe, has, according to union representatives, cancelled future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running.
The upshot is that they may have to close next month – even sooner than the earliest date suggested for its closure.
Read more: Thousands of jobs at risk as British Steel consults unions over closure
The fate of the blast furnaces – the last two domestic sources of virgin steel, made from iron ore rather than recycled – is likely to be determined in a matter of days, with the Department for Business and Trade now actively pondering nationalisation.
The upshot is that even as Britain contends with a trade war across the Atlantic, it is now working against the clock to secure the future of steelmaking at Scunthorpe.
The talks between the government and Jingye broke down last week after the Chinese company, which bought British Steel out of receivership in 2020, rejected a £500m offer of public money to replace the existing furnaces with electric arc furnaces.
The sum is the same one it offered to Tata Steel, which has shut down the other remaining UK blast furnaces in Port Talbot and is planning to build electric furnaces – which have far lower carbon emissions.
These steel workers could soon be out of work
However, the owners argue that the amount is too little to justify extra investment at Scunthorpe, and said last week they were now consulting on the date of shutting both the blast furnaces and the attached steelworks.
Since British Steel is the main provider of steel rails to Network Rail – as well as other construction steels available from only a few sites in the world – the closure would leave the UK more reliant on imports for critical infrastructure sites.
However, since the site belongs to its Chinese owners, a decision to nationalise the site would involve radical steps government officials are wary of taking.
They also fear leaving taxpayers exposed to a potentially loss-making business for the long run.
The dilemma has been heightened by the sharp turn in geopolitical sentiment following Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
The incipient trade war and threatened cut in American support to Europe have sparked fresh calls for countries to act urgently to secure their own supplies of critical materials, especially those used for defence and infrastructure.
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Gareth Stace, head of UK Steel, the industry lobby group, said: “Talks seem to have broken down between government and British Steel.
“My advice to government is: please, Jonathan Reynolds, Business Secretary, get back round that negotiating table, thrash out a deal, and if a deal can’t be found in the next few days, then I fear for the very future of the sector, but also here for Scunthorpe steelworks.”
British Steel declined to comment.
UK
Prince Andrew’s Pitch@Palace branded ‘crude attempt to enrich himself’ as Chinese spy documents set to be released
Prince Andrew’s efforts to make money from his Pitch@Palace project have been branded as a “crude attempt to enrich himself” at the expense of “unsuspecting tech founders”, as new documents may shed more light on what he and his team have been attempting to sell.
Today is the deadline for documents to be released relating to Prince Andrew‘s former senior adviser Dominic Hampshire and his interactions with the alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo.
In February, an immigration tribunal heard how the intelligence services had contacted Mr Hampshire about Mr Yang back in 2022. Mr Yang helped set up Pitch@Palace China, a branch of the duke’s scheme to help young entrepreneurs.
The alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo, has links with Prince Andrew
Yang Tengbo. Pic: Pitch@Palace
Judges banned Mr Yang from the UK, saying his association with a senior royal had made Prince Andrew “vulnerable” and posed a threat to national security. Mr Yang challenged that decision at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC).
Since that hearing, media organisations have applied for certain documents relating to the case and Mr Hampshire’s support for Mr Yang to be made public. SIAC agreed to release some information of public interest. It is hoped they may include more details on deals that he was trying to do on behalf of Prince Andrew.
So what do we know about potential deals for Pitch@Palace so far?
In February, Sky News confirmed that palace officials had a meeting last summer with tech funding company StartupBootcamp to discuss a potential tie-up between them and Prince Andrew relating to his Pitch@Palace project.
The palace wasn’t involved in the fine details of a deal but wanted guarantees to make sure it wouldn’t impact the Royal Family in the future. Sky News understands from one source that the price being discussed for Pitch was around £750,000 – there are, however, reports that a deal may have stalled.
Photos we found on the Chinese Chamber of Commerce website show an event held in Asia between StartupBootcamp and Innovate Global, believed to be an offshoot of Pitch.
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Who is alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo?
Documents, released in relation to the investigations into Mr Tengbo, have also shown how much the duke has always seen Pitch as a way of potentially making money. One document from 21 August 2021 clearly states “the duke needed money at the time, and saw the relationships with China through Pitch as one possible source of funding”.
But Prince Andrew’s apparent intention to use Pitch to make money has led to concerns about whether he is unfairly using the contacts and information he gained when he was a working royal.
Norman Baker, former MP and author of books on royal finances, believes it is “a crude attempt to enrich himself” and goes against what the tech entrepreneurs thought they were signing up for.
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He told Sky News: “The data given by these business people was given on the basis it was an official operation and not something for Prince Andrew, and so in my view, Prince Andrew had no right legally or morally to take the data which has been collected, a huge amount of data, and sell it…
“And quite clearly if you’re going to sell it off to StartupBootcamp, that is not what people had in mind. The entrepreneurs who joined Pitch@Palace did not do so to enrich Prince Andrew,” he said.
Rich Wilson was one tech entrepreneur who was approached at the start of Pitch@Palace to sign up, but he stepped away when he spotted a clause in the contract saying they’d be entitled to 2% equity in any funding he secured.
He feels Prince Andrew is continuing to use those he made a show of supporting.
He said: “It makes me feel sick. I think it’s terrible – that he is continuing to exploit unsuspecting tech founders in this way. A lot of them, I’m quite grey and old in the tooth now, I saw it coming, but clearly most didn’t. And a lot of them were quite young.
“It’ll be their first venture and you’re learning on the trot, so to speak. So to take advantage of people in such a major way – that’s an awful, sickening thing to do.”
We approached StartupBootcamp who said they had no comment to make, and the Duke of York’s office did not respond.
With reports that a deal may have stalled, it could be a big setback for the duke – especially with questions still about how he’ll continue to pay for his home on the Windsor estate now that the King no longer gives him financial support.
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